"I love Mama..."

As a mommy my favorite words to hear come out of my kid's mouth is any veriation of "I love you" directed solely at me.  Well I was swept completely away on Saturday morning by Zoe.  I told Zoe "I love you, Zoe" when we were eating breakfast that morning.  I always tell my kids several times a day that I love them.  Sometimes I wonder if they'll grow tired of hearing it, but I want them to always know how much their mommy loves them.  But when I told Zoe this time, it was different.  She smiled her big smile showing off her one precious dimple on her right cheek and those bright blues eyes twinkling as always and then she looked at me and said "I love Mama!"  I was completely smitten with her more than I ever thought possible.  While I know this little one year old girl may not know exactly what the meaning behind her words were, they knocked me off of my feet.  It is truly amazing how three simple words can melt your heart and touch your core.

The rest of the morning Zoe kept saying "I love Mama," "I love Dada," and "I love DD (what she calls Dylan)."  We were all so proud and happy with our baby girl. 

Later that night we had my parents over and my sister's family over for dinner to celebrate my mom's birthday.  While we were all at the table, Zoe started telling everyone that she loved them.  It was like a game that took her role call to the next level.  She would say "I love Bop," "I love Nana," and I'm not quite sure what she is calling Uncle Art or Aunt Deborah and her cousins yet, but it was clear she loved all of them. 

Zoe is truly a girl who has lots of love to give, is full of compassion and has a naturally nourishing and helpful spirit.  We love you, Zoe!